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They’re both quite vibrant. Chicago more so in the center of the city. And is more consistently vibrant.
Boston is very walkable, and ridership of public transportation is very high. So, you get a ton of foot traffic in high density areas between Back Bay and the Harbor.
And yes, Boston is expensive. It’s actually quite the bargain right now, relatively speaking. Seaports price per square foot was near $2.4k pre covid. $2.4M for 1000 sqft ain’t cheap. Meanwhile, you can get 1000 sq ft in Gold Coast for $500k. That should make your choice pretty easy, unless you realllyyy love Boston.
Do you feel that the people in Boston are different on average in terms of socioeconomic background than those of Chicago, atleast in the nicer parts of Boston?
Chicago just seems "middle class" if that makes sense. Small time. I got sick of seeing so many grown men walking around wearing tennis shoes, is it different in Boston? In many places it looked like I was the only person that bothered to take care of his attire (not saying I dress over the top, but I just made somewhat of an effort comparatively).
Not only that, but it just seemed insular. People don't make an effort to step out of their comfort zone. Same in Boston?
Do you feel that the people in Boston are different on average in terms of socioeconomic background than those of Chicago, atleast in the nicer parts of Boston?
Chicago just seems "middle class" if that makes sense. Small time. I got sick of seeing so many grown men walking around wearing tennis shoes, is it different in Boston? In many places it looked like I was the only person that bothered to take care of his attire (not saying I dress over the top, but I just made somewhat of an effort comparatively).
Not only that, but it just seemed insular. People don't make an effort to step out of their comfort zone. Same in Boston?
It kind of depends on what neighborhoods you live in, in Chicago. Lincoln Park and the downtown neighborhoods (Loop, River North, Gold Coast, Streeterville) is where you will find more of the higher SES. I am a physician, although by no means a baller, but many of my physician friends who are single have nice condos in River North (mainly), and those who are married usually live in the suburbs. Have a few good friends from college who are in Private Equity and Law, and the same pattern.
Pre-covid, when I would go out, you could kind of tell the difference in vibe. In the core/downtown neighborhoods, people were a lot more dressed up vs. as you get out in the neighborhood, it's definitely a lot more relaxed. People here always say downtown is the place you go when you want to get dressed up and the neighborhoods are where you go to relax.
Boston on the whole may have more of a higher SES class throughout, but you can definitely find neighborhoods in Chicago how you describe.
It kind of depends on what neighborhoods you live in, in Chicago. Lincoln Park and the downtown neighborhoods (Loop, River North, Gold Coast, Streeterville) is where you will find more of the higher SES. I am a physician, although by no means a baller, but many of my physician friends who are single have nice condos in River North (mainly), and those who are married usually live in the suburbs. Have a few good friends from college who are in Private Equity and Law, and the same pattern.
Pre-covid, when I would go out, you could kind of tell the difference in vibe. In the core/downtown neighborhoods, people were a lot more dressed up vs. as you get out in the neighborhood, it's definitely a lot more relaxed. People here always say downtown is the place you go when you want to get dressed up and the neighborhoods are where you go to relax.
Boston on the whole may have more of a higher SES class throughout, but you can definitely find neighborhoods in Chicago how you describe.
It kind of depends on what neighborhoods you live in, in Chicago. Lincoln Park and the downtown neighborhoods (Loop, River North, Gold Coast, Streeterville) is where you will find more of the higher SES. I am a physician, although by no means a baller, but many of my physician friends who are single have nice condos in River North (mainly), and those who are married usually live in the suburbs. Have a few good friends from college who are in Private Equity and Law, and the same pattern.
Pre-covid, when I would go out, you could kind of tell the difference in vibe. In the core/downtown neighborhoods, people were a lot more dressed up vs. as you get out in the neighborhood, it's definitely a lot more relaxed. People here always say downtown is the place you go when you want to get dressed up and the neighborhoods are where you go to relax.
Boston on the whole may have more of a higher SES class throughout, but you can definitely find neighborhoods in Chicago how you describe.
I actually find downtown Chicago and much of Chicagoland to be considerably more focused on fashion, cars.. More material things. Not a knock on Chicago at all. It plays well with the big city light aesthetic. Boston is preettyyyy low key when it comes to material items and fashion. What's interesting, is that Boston's shopping areas are incredibly boujee and high brow.
Greater Boston is boujee in other ways.. Middle upper class is very much dedicated to coffee shop/tech culture. More comparable to some of it's coastal peers like Seattle or the Bay Area. Not to say that Chicago doesn't have this, but it doesn't make up a distinct culture. It hasn't been an intense, generational movement like it is other places.
I actually find downtown Chicago and much of Chicagoland to be considerably more focused on fashion, cars.. More material things. Not a knock on Chicago at all. It plays well with the big city light aesthetic. Boston is preettyyyy low key when it comes to material items and fashion. What's interesting, is that Boston's shopping areas are incredibly boujee and high brow.
Greater Boston is boujee in other ways.. Middle upper class is very much dedicated to coffee shop/tech culture. More comparable to some of it's coastal peers like Seattle or the Bay Area. Not to say that Chicago doesn't have this, but it doesn't make up a distinct culture. It hasn't been an intense, generational movement like it is other places.
I’d also argue Boston is much more conservative than Chicago.
It kind of depends on what neighborhoods you live in, in Chicago. Lincoln Park and the downtown neighborhoods (Loop, River North, Gold Coast, Streeterville) is where you will find more of the higher SES. I am a physician, although by no means a baller, but many of my physician friends who are single have nice condos in River North (mainly), and those who are married usually live in the suburbs. Have a few good friends from college who are in Private Equity and Law, and the same pattern.
Pre-covid, when I would go out, you could kind of tell the difference in vibe. In the core/downtown neighborhoods, people were a lot more dressed up vs. as you get out in the neighborhood, it's definitely a lot more relaxed. People here always say downtown is the place you go when you want to get dressed up and the neighborhoods are where you go to relax.
Boston on the whole may have more of a higher SES class throughout, but you can definitely find neighborhoods in Chicago how you describe.
I agree, there are some really nice neighborhoods and townships in the Chicago area that people may “dress up” that rival NYC’s even, just not as many.
Do you feel that the people in Boston are different on average in terms of socioeconomic background than those of Chicago, atleast in the nicer parts of Boston?
Chicago just seems "middle class" if that makes sense. Small time. I got sick of seeing so many grown men walking around wearing tennis shoes, is it different in Boston? In many places it looked like I was the only person that bothered to take care of his attire (not saying I dress over the top, but I just made somewhat of an effort comparatively).
Not only that, but it just seemed insular. People don't make an effort to step out of their comfort zone. Same in Boston?
It sounds like you would fit well in nyc...look outside Manhattan or even New Jersey..nyc is a fashion capital
It sounds like you would fit well in nyc...look outside Manhattan or even New Jersey..nyc is a fashion capital
Nyc fashion is just strange. A little over the top. I dont find it attractive, lot of it is just plain tacky.
Boston is lowkey and not in your face with name brands. When people go out as friends they dress up in going out attire. But on a sunday afternoon? The lawyers on Newbury Street dont care what they are wearing and who is judging them.
Nj is very similar, probably identical to Boston in this regard. My fashion was translatable to nj.
Chicago i didnt really notice people dressing casual a lot.
I think its my guy friends in Boston try to wear bro clothes like Adidas track pants where nyc is more your personality is your clothes, which is great and all. But meh
An average outfit for me on a random sunday to go get coffee in Boston was llbean boots, addidas track pants and and a fitted muscle shirt and sweater.
Yup or Socioeconomic Status, how I refer to it, but same idea.
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